This project will produce a survey of mortality from autoimmune diseases in all major occupational categories in the United States. The objective is to generate new hypotheses concerning the association between autoimmune diseases and environmental exposures that occur in specific occupational settings. The completed survey will constitute a fundamental, but presently missing, element in epidemiological surveillance for the autoimmune diseases. The data for the project will be drawn from the nationwide database of death certificates maintained by the National Center for Health Statistics. Cause of death and occupational information from more than 6.5 million death certificates for the 1985-96 period will be used to conduct a proportional mortality survey. The occupational categories (approximately 750, in total) will be drawn from the Classified Index of Industries and Occupations. The survey will identify specific occupational categories, as well as groups of related categories in which there is excess mortality from any of 23 autoimmune diseases. In addition, the survey will investigate the potential modifying effects of gender, race, and age of occupational exposures.